


Make Me Feel Alive

by ChinUpGuardian



Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: Eris doesn't understand romantic feelings at all, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Nyx helps Eris realize her feelings for the Drifter, Slow Burn, Strong Language, descriptions of fight scenes, somewhat canon compliant
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 14:28:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29951358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChinUpGuardian/pseuds/ChinUpGuardian
Summary: Friendship is a difficult thing for Eris Morn, especially after what happened in the Pit all those years ago. Nyx has been one of the only friends whom Eris knows that she can rely on for anything, and Eris was okay with that. However, everything changed when the Drifter showed up in the Tower and brought his illicit game with him. He was shrouded in mystery, and Eris found herself curious about the man behind the mystery. During the time she spent working with the Drifter, Eris was mostly able to decipher the mystery that she found interesting, and she thought that her curiosity had been sated about the Drifter. Why is it that Eris cannot keep her mind off of the Drifter? There’s something about him that piques her interest, and Eris cannot figure out why. Just what is it about the Drifter that makes Eris feel so alive when she thought she could never feel alive again?
Relationships: The Drifter/Eris Morn
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize if my Eris and Drifter are out of character, this is the first time that I am writing them, and I hope to get better at writing them as the story goes on! I do hope that you enjoy the story despite that detail!

_The Drifter was a man who was shrouded in mystery, and Eris was drawn to it for a reason that she could not explain._

At first, he wouldn't speak to her, and Eris wondered if it was because of her eyes. When others would speak to her, Eris could tell that they were uncomfortable because of her eyes, and she knew that they were the reason why no one talked to her that much.  
**Everyone except Nyx, of course.**  
Nyx was different, always had been. Eris thought of her often while she was in the Pit, and seeing her best friend again was one of the reasons that Eris was able to keep her sanity down in the darkness after losing her Ghost. Even when Eris was able to escape, thanks to her wish, Nyx stayed by her side in the hospital as often as possible. Nyx didn't see Eris as any different than before, and Eris was thankful for the familiarity in a time when she felt like a huge piece of herself had died in the Pit.

 _The first time the Drifter had spoken to Eris, the feeling that raced through her was akin to being hit with a Pulse Grenade._  
His voice was rough and had a nice baritone pitch to it, but the Drifter's voice cut through Eris like a hot knife through butter, and she dismissed it as part of his mystery. He had said a simple greeting and mentioned that Nyx had spoken highly of her to him, and they had engaged in a bit of small talk before Eris had to leave and go back to the Moon.

While she flew back to the Moon in her ship, Eris had been thinking about the aura of mystery that seemed to surround the Drifter. Eris knew that her curiosity in the man would be short-lived, but it didn't seem to bother her like it normally did with others that piqued her curiosity. From that moment on, Eris began to try and unravel the mystery that surrounded the Drifter, but it wasn't until they began to work together when the pyramid ships first came to the Sol System that Eris was able to begin to pick at the threads of the mystery that followed the Drifter wherever he went. The more that Eris unraveled the mystery, the closer she and Drifter became. However, one question remained at the back of Eris' mind through everything that was going on between herself and the Drifter.

_**How was the Drifter managing to make Eris feel more alive than she has felt since she escaped the Pit all those years ago?** _


	2. Memories Bring Back Pain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for this chapter: Descriptions of panic attacks, trauma mentions, character death (not sure whether I should add the tag major character death or not).  
> This chapter goes off the lore rails, and this is my interpretation of what went down when Eris lost her fireteam.

As Eris stepped off of her ship after spending the afternoon with Nyx at the Tower, she sighed softly as her shoulders dropped from their tensed position that she held them in while visiting the Tower. As much as she enjoyed talking to Nyx, Ikora, and the Drifter, Eris felt the stares and the fear from the other Guardians, and they always gave her a wide berth whenever she would walk by a group of them. The fear and pity from others was something that she would never get used to, but it didn't get under her skin as much as it used to when she first escaped the Pit.

_**The Pit.** _

Oh, how Eris wanted that fateful day to have gone differently.

_Vell Tarlowe had been the first to fall that day, screaming at the other five members to go on without him, lest they get killed as well. Sai Mota and Eriana-3 had gotten separated from Toland, Omar Agah, and herself in the Temple of Crota, never to be seen again. Omar got lost in the shadows soon after and couldn't find Eris or Toland, then Eris and Toland decided to split up because he wanted to find out more about the Deathsingers' song while Eris wanted to find Crota. After a long while, Eris stumbled upon Omar, who was being tortured by a Wizard and she was unable to save him. Eris remembered the feeling of loneliness that surged through her as she tried to traverse the tunnels to get out. She didn't know how long she had been there, all she knew was that she was running low on ammo and her Ghost couldn't pick up on any of her fireteam members' signals._

**Do you wish to leave this place?**

_"What? What was that?" Eris spoke in a whisper and her Ghost was unable to give her an answer. Not hearing the voice speak again for a few minutes, Eris kept moving blindly through the tunnels while humming a melody to try and keep her spirits up. Eris ran into a few Hive Thralls along the way through the tunnels, but she was able to dispatch them quickly without drawing too much attention to herself. Unfortunately, Eris' luck ran out and she was spotted by a Hive Knight, who bellowed to signal that the creature had found an enemy. Eris was then ambushed by Hive, and she tried her best to dispel them all, but they kept coming. One by one, Eris' weapons ran out of ammo, and she resorted to running away to stay alive.  
"Eris, don't look back! Keep running!" Her Ghost called to her, catching the attention of the Hive as he flew over their heads to give Eris time to escape. Tears filled Eris' eyes as she ran, and she sobbed when she felt the Light leave her body. Her Ghost had sacrificed himself to try and save her life. Eris couldn't run anymore, and she tripped into a dead-end hallway and curled up in a ball, hoping that the Hive wouldn't find her. Eris was now utterly alone, and the thought made her stifle a fresh round of sobbing._

**O holder mine, you are not alone. What would you do to leave this place?**

_"Anything."_

**All you have to do is wish it, O holder mine.**

_"I wish to leave this place."_

_A shrill shriek filled the air near Eris, and a Hive Knight came charging at her. Fear made Eris unable to move until the voice spoke once more._

**Take its eyes.**

Eris gasped a deep breath as the flashback ended, and her deep breath turned into hyperventilating as panic surged through her. She felt like she was drowning, and her body acted on instinct as she slumped to the floor and began to sob alongside her hyperventilating. Shaking hands rummaged through her armor and she pulled out a small datapad from her armor, hitting the first button that her eyes could see and she started trying to calm down enough to speak.

"Eris? Hey, how was your-Eris?! Oh, you're having a panic attack! Hold on, I'm on my way, okay? I'll stay on the line with you while I fly to you." Nyx's voice came through the datapad, and Eris felt a little calmer at hearing her best friend's voice. While Eris tried to focus on calming down, she could faintly hear Nyx's voice reassuring her that it's okay to think of the bad memories and that she's come a long way since she left the Pit. Once Eris gained control of her breathing, she began to do the breathing exercise that Nyx taught her to try and make the panic that was surging through her veins calm down fully.

_Inhale._  
**1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.**  
_Hold._  
**1, 2, 3, 4.**  
_Exhale._  
**1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8.**

Eris repeated the breathing exercise a few times, and her panic rose again when her door opened, but it quickly calmed once again when Eris saw Nyx come in.  
"Good job Eris, the breathing exercise helps, doesn't it?" Nyx smiled softly, setting their bag down on the floor and kneeling in front of Eris.  
"Can I touch you to give you a hug? If not, I brought some Ramen and some water that we can eat. I got your favorite kind." Nyx spoke, nothing but kindness and empathy in their voice. Eris nodded her consent for a hug, and Nyx gently wrapped their arms around Eris' still shaking body. Eris hugged Nyx back, the shaking ceasing as Nyx's familiarity helped Eris' brain to calm down the rest of the way from the unexpected flashback.  
"Unexpected flashback. I was thinking about how I wanted the day I lost them all to have gone differently, and the next thing I knew, I was seeing it and reliving that day again." Eris spoke, voice shaky and hoarse from the crying and apparent screaming she had been doing while in her flashback. Nyx nodded in understanding, moving one arm to grab their bag and get Eris' food and drink out.  
"I know how that is darlin', trust me. I had one the other night. It took Shaxx and Ikora to get me down from a ledge in the Tower because I was having a flashback about Ghaul. The feeling that was surgin' through my veins was nothin' and yet everything I had felt before, and I felt like I was going to die. I'm glad that I was able to snap out of it before I fell off the side of the Tower," Nyx spoke, a somber tone in their voice. "But hey, at least I remembered to grab food. I thought you'd be hungry since you left in a hurry, but I don't blame you. I hate the way that everyone looks at you, and I chewed a few people out after you left. No one looks at my best friend in disgust without gettin' an ass chewin' from me." Nyx added, a sneer forming on their face at the memory of the guardians that looked at Eris in disgust. Eris gently grabbed the box that held her still warm ramen and her cold water and chuckled softly at Nyx.  
"It doesn't bother me anymore Nyx, you know this. Yet, you stick up for me when I cannot. That is why you are my best friend." Eris smiled softly, beginning to eat as Nyx took a big bite of their food as well. Nyx snorted a laugh, playfully pushing Eris with their shoulder before their expression turned unreadable.  
"You know that lead you've been chasin'? I was able to get some information. Saladin isn't the only surviving Iron Lord, you know? Anyway, the pyramid ships are beginning to appear across the Sol system, but I was able to find out where they've been setting up shop. Io, Titan, Mercury, and Mars. I don't know what they are, but I'm getting a bad feeling Eris. There's only one thing that gives me that bad feeling, and that's the Darkness." Nyx admitted, sighing softly as they sat down their food.  
"Are you one-hundred percent positive, Nyx? If this information is false, many more lives will be at stake." Eris asked Nyx, her tone now grave and serious.  
"I'm sure. Saw the scans myself, and it's freaky. These pyramid ships are surrounding us across the system. From the Tangled Shore to Mercury, we're surrounded. Now it's honestly just a game of wait and see. The estimated timeframe on when she ships will make contact with the four planets is about a week, maybe less. Wonder what Drifter would have to say about these ships. I think he might know something about them." Nyx spoke, pulling a datapad from their bag and showing Eris the scans and estimated number of days before the ships make contact with Io, Titan, Mars, and Mercury.  
"Then we will show the Drifter these scans and the estimates. If he has information, he could be very useful to us and may help save us from potential destruction." Eris nodded, taking the last bite of her food and setting the empty box on the floor.  
"Thank you for looking into my lead Nyx. I will admit that I was having a little bit of trouble finding anything, and you came to my aid once again." Eris smiled softly, putting a hand on Nyx's shoulder as a sign of appreciation.  
"No problem Eris, you know I'll help you with anything I can. I better get going though, it's getting late. If you want, I'll swing by tomorrow after I get some more information from my source, and we can go show our findings to the Drifter together. If that's alright with you, of course." Nyx offered, standing up and gathering their bag.  
"That would be nice. He seems like a nice person, but maybe that's because I have only met him twice before." Eris chuckled, and Nyx nodded their head in agreement.  
"Ah, Drifter's nice 'n all, but he can be a real asshole too. You two would get along actually. His sarcasm can almost match yours." Nyx joked, giving Eris one last hug before walking out the door. Eris didn't know if the Drifter could be trusted with the data and scans that Nyx found, but if Nyx said that he was trustworthy enough to show the scans to, then Eris could make an attempt to trust the Drifter too.

As Eris slept that night, she found her sleep fitful and broken. One constant throughout her dreams was a man with a glowing green eye, and Eris couldn't deny that she was both terrified and intrigued about who this man was. Maybe this man was part of the mysterious aura that surrounded the Drifter. Eris didn't know if that was the case, but she would have to do more digging to find out if that was him or not.

_Everything would hopefully make more sense in the morning._  
**_At least, Eris hoped that would be the case._**


End file.
